1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a telephone answering device in which the user can record a new outgoing announcement under remote control via the telephone line.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional telephone answering device responds to an incoming call by initially transmitting a prerecorded outgoing announcement. This announcement typically informs the caller that the user is out, and invites the caller to leave a message which is then automatically recorded. The user later can retrieve these messages by playback of the message tape, either at the device itself when the user returns to his home or office, or if the device is so equipped, by remote controlled playout over the telephone line.
The usefulness of such a device is enhanced if the outgoing announcement can easily be changed. For example, if the user is leaving for a certain length of time, he can record a new answering message indicating the time or date when he still return. Altenatively, the new message may state that the user is at another location, and may give the telephone number for that place so that the user can be reached immediately. As another example, the user can leave a specific message intended for a certain person whose call is expected.
Most prior art telephone answering devices do have built-in facilitates for recording a new outgoing announcement. For example, the answering apparatus disclosed in the inventor's U.S.Pat. No. 3,780,226 includes facilities for recording a new message on the outgoing announcement tape loop using the local telephone handset as the microphone. Other prior art devices utilize a built-in microphone for this purpose. However, such prior art devices require that recording of the new message be carried out where the answering apparatus is located. By contrast, an object of the present invention is to provide a telephone answering device in which a new outgoing announcement can be recorded over the telephone line by remote control from a distant location.
The present invention thus permits the user to call back to his home or office and change the outgoing announcement, for example, to indicate his present whereabouts and the telephone number where he can presently be reached. The invention is particularly useful in a telphone answering device which also is capable of remote controlled playout of previously recorded messages. In that instance, e.g., the intitial outgoing announcement may inform the caller that if he leaves a message requesting additional information, he should call back at a later time for an answer. Meanwhile, the user can obtain this message by remote controlled playout, and then employ the present invention to record a new outgoing announcement which contains an answer to the question posed by the previous caller. The caller will receive this answer when he later again calls the user's number.
One prior art telephone answering device in which the outgoing announcement can be changed from a remote location is shown in the Japanese Pat. No. 40-27442 to Yasuma Mata. In that apparatus, a large number of relays are used to control the operational mode. For remote recording of a new outgoing announcement, the user calls his own number. The device answers the call. During announcement playout, the user sends a first beep tone which sets a latching circuit that in turn energizes a first set of relays which condition the device for recordation. When a conductive strip on the outgoing announcement tape loop next shorts a pair of contacts, a second latch circuit is set which energizes a second set of relays. These enable continued tape loop motion, and connect the output of a single amplifier to the tape loop record head. The user then speaks the new announcement, which is recorded on that tape loop.
An object of the present invention is to facilitate the remote controlled recordation of a new outgoing announcement in a telephone answering device, without the use of relays. A further object is to implement this function by utilizing circuitry already present in the telephone answering device, thereby minimizing the number of additional components required and reducing the cost. Accordingly, another object is to minimize the latching and control circuitry necessary to enable both remote controlled recordation of a new outgoing message, and automatic playback of that message to verify its correctness. When implemented in a telephone answering device with remote controlled playout of recorded incoming messages, the same remote control signal or "beep" tone can be used at different times during the answering cycle to condition either remote playout or new announcement recordation.
A different object of the present invention is to provide a telephone answering device in which the outgoing announcement is stored in digital format in a programmable read only memory. In prior art telephone answering devices, the outgoing announcement is stored on a recording medium which requires a mechanical driving arrangement. By storing the outgoing announcement digitally in a read only memory (ROM) and using appropriate readout and speech synthesizer circuitry, the need for a mechanical drive system is completely eliminated. Similarly, time compression encoding of the announcement may be used, together with a microprocessor to decode the compressed speech. The ROM and synthesizer or speech compression decoder all may be implemented in a single integrated circuit chip. So configured, the cost may actually be less than that of a mechanical drive system, with none of the shortcomings inherent in a mechanical device which is subject to misadjustment or malfunction as a result of repeated wear.